MARCH 21, 1949
PACKERS OVERTAKE DUKES FOR SECOND PLACE AS NAHC SEASON CONCLUDES
Win Home Ice Advantage for Semi Finals
The Chicago Packers completed one of the most impressive second half runs the NAHC has ever seen as they turned what looked like a lost season into home ice advantage for the opening round of the playoffs. The Packers went 23-7-5 since December 22 after starting the season 7-17-1, including taking 13 out of a possible 16 points in March, to storm past the slumping Toronto Dukes and finish in second place, one point up on Toronto. The Dukes, on the other hand, limped across the finish line with a 4-8-1 mark that dropped them from first place to third over the final month of the season.
Chicago riding high, will now open the playoffs at Lakeside Arena against the Dukes this week. The Dukes did manage to retain the individual scoring title as Quinton Pollack's 64 points were two better than Tommy Burns of the Packers accumulated despite the fact that Burns missed 11 games with an injury. Pollack, like the rest of the Dukes, is in a slump and did not record a single point in any of his last five games.
Toronto and Chicago have met three times in the playoffs before with the Dukes emerging victorious all three. The most recent meeting was 1944-45 when the Dukes won the best-of-five semi-final series 3 games to one.
The other playoff series promises to be an interesting one only because the first place Boston Bees will be without starting goaltender Oscar James likely for the entire series. It will be a real test for backup Pierre Melancon as he and his mates face the high scoring but defensively indifferent Detroit Motors. Detroit held off Montreal and New York for fourth place and the final playoff berth mainly on the strength of possessing the league's most dangerous offense. The Motors led the NAHC this season with 198 goals.
It has been seven years since Boston and Detroit met in the post-season but they did have quite a rivalry for a stretch. Boston knocked off the Motors twice in successive seasons in the Challenge Cup Finals including a thrilling seven-game series win in 1942. Boston won the Cup in 6 games in 1941 and the only other post-season meeting of the two since Detroit acquired its franchise was in the spring of 1939 when the Detroit Olympians -as they were known then- upset first place Boston with a 4 game sweep in the semi-finals.
Code:
FINAL NAHC STANDINGS
GP W L T GF GA PTS
Boston 60 36 19 5 188 150 77
Chicago 60 30 24 6 192 175 66
Toronto 60 29 24 7 186 172 65
Detroit 60 24 29 7 198 188 55
Montreal 60 22 31 7 156 193 51
New York 60 18 32 10 152 194 46
SCORING LEADERS GP G A PTS
Pollack, Tor 60 28 36 64
T Burns, Chi 49 39 23 62
Chandler, Bos 55 23 37 60
Galbraith, Tor 58 28 31 59
Hart, Bos 57 27 31 58
Sauer, Tor 60 28 28 56
Vanderbilt, Det 57 28 25 53
Witt, Det 57 18 34 52
Skinner, Mon 60 24 24 48
Ducharme, CHI 57 19 29 48
Cabbell, NY 49 26 20 46
Carlson, Tor 55 13 32 45
Rocheleau, Det 53 6 39 45
GOALIE LEADERS GP W L T ShO GAA
James, Bos 50 29 16 5 6 2.45
Hanson, Chi 45 22 19 4 4 2.73
Broadway, Tor 54 24 23 7 4 2.82
Brockers, Mon 45 16 25 3 3 2.92
Chasse, Det 21 9 10 0 1 2.95
Tremblay, NY 53 15 28 8 2 3.10
Touhey, Det 39 14 19 5 3 3.23
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS
TUESDAY MARCH 15
New York 2 at 3 Boston: The Boston Bees held off the Shamrocks 3-2, officially ending New York's faint playoff hopes. Tommy Hart scored the game winner, his 27th of the season, early in the third period as the Bees adjusted to life without Oscar James, at least for the start of the playoffs. Pierre Melancon stopped 18 of the 20 shots he faced in place of the injured Boston number one goaltender.
WEDNESDAY MARCH 16
Boston 1 at 5 Chicago: The Chicago Packers moved to within a point of the Toronto Dukes for second place and home-ice in the opening round of the playoffs with a convincing 5-1 victory over Boston. The Packers scored three times in the opening period and then added two more in the middle frame before Willis Beane broke Norm Hanson's shutout bid with just over 3 minutes left in the game.
Detroit 8 at 3 New York: Defenseman Spencer Larocque scored three times and added an assist while Adam Vanderbilt had a 6-point night as the Detroit Motors moved closer to clinching a playoff spot by blasting the hometown Shamrocks 8-3.
THURSDAY MARCH 17
Montreal 4 at 0 Toronto: Tom Brockers stopped all 31 shots he faced while Shel Herron had 3 assists to lead the Montreal Valiants to a 4-0 victory over Toronto. The win keeps the Valiants very slim playoff hopes alive but they need to win each of their final two games and have Detroit lose both of theirs just to force a tie for fourth place. Toronto, is suddenly very much in danger of allowing the Chicago Packers to slip past them for second place. The Dukes have dropped three straight games and are winless in their last four.
SATURDAY MARCH 19
Montreal 1 at 4 Chicago: Their fourth straight win, coupled with Toronto's loss in Detroit, moved the Chicago Packers ahead of the Dukes and into second place with just one game remaining for each. The Packers 4-1 victory also ended the Montreal Valiants hopes of catching the Motors for the final playoff berth. Clarence Skinner of the Vals scored the only goal of the opening period and the game was tied at 1 entering the third frame, before the Packers exploded for three goals, including a pair 54 seconds apart early in the period to secure the win.
Toronto 2 at 6 Detroit: The Motors handed the Toronto Dukes their fourth straight loss, beating Toronto 6-2 and clinching fourth place and the final playoff spot in the process. A 3-goal outburst in the second period was the difference with Marsh Spencer leading the way for the home club with a pair of markers.
SUNDAY MARCH 20
Boston 0 at 4 Toronto: The Dukes snapped their skid with a 4-0 win thanks to an impressive 32-save shutout from backup goaltender Terry Russell. The win, at least momentarily, kept the Dukes hopes of reclaiming second place and home ice advantage in the semi-final round but those hopes would be crushed with news of a Packers win in Chicago meaning Toronto will be on the road to open the playoffs this week. Bobbie Sauer had a big night for the Dukes with 2 goals and an assist. Quinton Pollack won the league scoring title despite being held pointless the final five games of the season.
Detroit 2 at 5 Montreal: In what turned out to be a meaningless game Paulie Mosca scored twice and added two helpers to lead the Montreal Valiants to a 5-2 victory over Detroit. The Valiants will miss the playoffs for the third year in a row as Detroit claimed the fourth and final spot.
New York 0 at 6 Chicago: The Packers clinched secong place and home-ice advantage for their semi-final series with Toronto after blanking the New York Shamrocks 6-0. Tommy Burns scored 3 times and added an assist giving him an NAHC 39 goals and finishing just two points back of Toronto's Quinton Pollack in the points race despite the fact that Burns missed 11 games with a shoulder injury. Norm Hanson had an easy night in the Chicago net, facing just 14 shots for his fourth shutout of the season.
END OF REGULAR SEASON
AROUND THE LEAGUE
- Bob Murphy of the Detroit Times with his thoughts on the semi-final matchups. "Going to be a couple of interesting semi-finals. I would have given Detroit no chance of upending Boston but maybe the absence of James will be enough to give the league's highest scoring offense the edge it needs over what I expect would still be a heavily favoured Boston six. Meanwhile Toronto is struggling. Quinton Pollack is pointless in 5 games and barely hung on to win the scoring title and Lou Galbraith sprained his wrist and likely will miss the entire semi-final series. Chicago has been the hottest team in the league since Christmas and Tommy Burns is on fire. Hard not to predict a series win for the Packers."
- Archie Irwin of the Chicago Daily News points out that the "Packers ended the season about as good as you can. Finished the season off with a commanding 6-0 shutout of the Shamrocks, with Tommy Bruns picking up a hat-trick and an assist to finish with 39 goals and 23 assists. He scored 11 more goals than any other NAHC player despite appearing in just 49 of Chicago's 60 games. His 62 points were shy of just Quinton Pollock's 64, but he played in all 60 of the Dukes games. Burns and Pollock will square up in the opening round in Chicago, as the Packers amazing second half brought them from last to second."
- Bulletin board material perhaps? In Jack Barrell's post-game press conference Sunday he mentioned he had "a plan for shutting down Tommy Burns." Not sure any coach in the league has had much success trying to do that for the better part of a decade. Let's see what Barrell has up his sleeve, or will word trickle back to the Windy City and ignite a huge playoff showing out of Burns?
MOTORS FINISH STRONG, FACE TEST IN BEES
Badger Rigney and the Detroit Motors accomplished task number one. The new coach managed to navigate his young charges into the playoffs, something the Motors had only participated in once in the previous three seasons. Rigney also showed confidence in his young troops and allowed them to be the creative offense forces they can be. The result was some exciting firewagon hockey at the Palladium and while mistakes were made in their own end, the club generally had enough offensive punch to survive.
The playoffs will be a much different test and the Boston Bees are certainly going to tighten up what is already the league's stingiest defense but the Motors have high hopes of upsetting the first place club just as the New York Shamrocks did with Chicago a year ago. The spirits are just a little higher with news that Boston's tremendous starting goaltender Oscar James will miss the series with an injury. However, Pierre Melancon is an experienced back-up who won't make it easy on the rising young Detroit offensive stars.
The key will be to try and steal one of the first two games at Denny Arena before returning home for games three and four in the best of seven set.
Let's hope the Motors have a little more success at Denny Arena than the Detroit City College Knights. The local cage quintet made an early exit from the AIAA tournament for the second year in a row. A year ago, they fell to Lexington State to finish the season with a 19-11 record and now a disappointing but not completely surprising loss at the hands of Annapolis Maritime means another early end for the Knights, who finish 20-10 on the season. The East Regional meeting between DCC and the Navigators was held at Denny Arena in Boston, a location the Motors are off to this week.
Meanwhile in Lakeland there is plenty of buzz about young pitcher Jack Miller. The 22-year-old Georgia native who was a second round pick out of Red River State a year ago, is making quite an impression on manager Dick York at Dynamos camp. Miller has allowed just one earned run in three spring starts and is making a strong push to be part of the 24-man roster when the club heads north next month. Plans had Miller, who pitched well in the Cuban Winter League, but had no experience above the AA level, to start the season in AAA Newardk, but clearly Miller is intent on changing those plans. The Dynamos are 6-7 after two weeks of Citrus contests. The season opener is April 19 in St Louis against the two-time defending World Champion Pioneers.
Dukes Fizzle, Finish Third as NAHC Playoff Set to Start --By dropping two of their last three the Toronto Dukes allowed the Chicago Packers to finish one point ahead of them to take home ice advantage in their upcoming semi-final series to start the chase for the Challenge Cup.
The week began with a rather uninspired game at home with Montreal providing the opposition at Dominion Gardens. The Vals put two by surprise starter Gordie Broadway, who had been suffering with infection in a chin cut forcing removal of the stitches, draining then closing the wound again. The Montreal markers in the first period came from Rey Sclisizzi and Wayne Augustin. Toronto's only highlight of the period was when Luke Brisebois, trying to inject some life into the team, squared off with Vals heavyweight Ian Finnson with 5 minutes left in opening frame.
If Brisebois' plan was to wake up the team it did not have the desired effect, as the Dukes seemed to sleepwalk through the second period, one in which Adam Sanford made it 3-0 at 11:33 went left alone in front of the Dukes net. The Dukes had nothing going for themselves again in the third although Mike Navarro did inject a life in the crowd at least when he dropped the mitts with Finnson in the Montreal zone. This writer believes Finnson would have been declared the victor on all cards in both bouts. With 2 seconds remaining Paulie Mosca added insult to injury making it 4-0 Montreal.
In Detroit Saturday night the Dukes faced their archrivals, the Motors, who were trying to lockup a playoff berth. Motors appeared to be under orders to stick to hockey and not engage in the extracurricular activities post whistle. Detroit struck early when, with Torontos' Charlie Brown off for holding, Marsh Spencer slammed a pass from Adam Vanderbilt past a down and out Broadway. Six minutes later Spencer Larocque doubled the advantage on a shot from the point that handcuffed the Dukes' keeper. Navarro managed to close the gap on a pretty 3-way passing play from Bobbie Sauer and Brisebois just before the 15 minute mark. The old nemisis reared its ugly head when Toronto again coughed up a late goal when Vincent Arsenault buried a wrist shot with just 4 seconds left in the frame. The second period was all Motors on the scoring sheet with Arnold Singleton, early to make it 4-1, followed by Spencer, with his second of the game, and Graham Ferrar all lighting the lamp behind the Dukes' goal making it 6-2 after two. Down five with twenty to play Toronto showed a little life but only managed one goal, from Dick Zimmerman making the final score only slightly more respectable at 6-2 as Detroit clinched its spot in the playoffs.
Toronto ended the regular season with a home game against the Bees in a contest that meant nothing to Boston but the Dukes with help from New York could still finish second. Boston put up a fight but were relying more heavily on their second and third line players with, it seemed, everyone protecting themselves from injury. The game remained scoreless until almost 18 minutes into the second when Al Cote blasted a shot past Boston goaltender Pierre Melancon after pinching in during a power play. In the third Les Carlson scored at 5:02 followed just over a minute later by Sauer making it 3-0 and the Bees seemed to fold up their tent looking to just get the game over with. Sauer added another one at 16:38 to make the final 4-0 giving the Dukes hope for home ice in the semi-final series with Chicago. The news from Windy City came in about an hour later while the Dukes were still in the dressing room. Packers had won their 5th in a row dismantling the Shamrocks 6-0 clinching second place.
Coach Barrell: "We made our own beds with poor efforts against both Montreal and Detroit. Now will be forced to open on the road against a red hot Packers club. I thought about starting Russell at home Wednesday though I am not sure it would have any difference the way we played in our zone. The worst news in that game was that Lou Galbraith sprained his wrist badly when he crosschecked, with no call I might add, into the boards. He will probably miss the Chicago series along with Dubois and Parker. Nice to see Pollack leading the league in scoring although this is a team game. Time to prepare for the Packers, I have a plan for shutting down Tommy Burns."
CLOSE CALLS FOR TOP SEEDS, AND PAIR OF UPSETS IN AIAA CAGE TOURNEY
Each of the four number one seeds survived the opening round of the AIAA tournament, but not without some tense moments for a pair of them in the Coastal California Dolphins and Rainier College Majestics. The second seeds were not quite as lucky with top ten outfit North Carolina Tech and Southwestern Alliance champion Texas Gulf Coast each going down to defeat at the hands of seventh seeds as the 40th annual collegiate cage championship tipped off over the weekend.
Only the South Region went exactly according to script as each of the four higher seeds advanced. Top ranked Carolina Poly had little difficulty in disposing of St Gordius 54-36 behind 17 points from James Halle but it was a costly win as Halle left late with an injury and his status for next Friday's game against Indiana A&M is uncertain. The 4th seeded Reapers, making just their second tournament appearance since 1930, beat Golden Gate 45-28 in the opening round.
On the other side of the South Region bracket it will be #2 St Blane against #3 Mississippi A&M after each prevailed Sunday. The Fighting Saints, TWIFB's pick to go all the way for the first time in school history, held off a pesky Keystone Alliance champion Mahoning Valley State to prevail 52-48. Dennis Hall had 16 points to lead the Miners, who managed to get within one point of the Saints with 2:54 remaining before fading. After going 26 years without a tournament victory, Mississippi A&M has earned one for the second year in a row following the Generals 67-46 romp over Maryland State. Senior forward Micah Shuman had a career high 26 points to lead the way for the winners.
*** Dolphins Nearly Fall to Foxes ***
In the West Region the Coastal California Dolphins barely held off Flint to score a 46-44 victory over the determined Foxes, who never led in the second half but spent the entire last 16 minutes of the game never more than 4 points behind. Dolphins leader Chris Martines paved the way with 16 points. Next up for Coastal California will be Frankford State after the 5th seeded Owls upended #4 Central Ohio 65-56.
7th seed Utah A&M had little trouble knocking off #2 Texas Gulf Coast for what was the first tournament game victory in the Aggies history. They had previously lost 11 straight tournament outings. The Hurricanes reached the National Semi-Finals a year ago but are going home early this time following the 48-34 loss to A&M. Next up for the Aggies will be Lexington State after the 3rd seeded Colonials dumped Laclede 58-33 on the strength of 15 points from freshman reserve guard Fritz McCusker.
*** Top Ranked Canaries Advance ***
Western Iowa, ranked #1 in the nation during the season, had little trouble in its tournament opener as Willy Ludwick scored 15 points to pace the Canaries to a 62-46 victory over Eastern Kansas and run their record this year to 29-1. Next up for the Great Lakes Alliance champs will be possibly their toughest test of the season as they meet #4 seeded CC Los Angeles in the second round of the Midwest Region. The Coyotes, winners of the tournament three years ago and finalists last season, dumped Central Carolina 63-52 on the weekend.
It will be Lane State and Noble Jones College in the second round on the other side of the Midwest bracket after the two higher seeds each prevailed. The #2 seeded Emeralds downed Texas Panhandle 57-41 with junior forward Carl Casswell, as he has done all season, leading the way. Casswell had 25 points and 10 rebounds against the Cowboys. Joseph Bosco had 14 points while Mike Miller and Ken Avelar added 12 each to lead #3 Noble Jones College past Darnell State 55-43.
*** Techsters Taught a Lesson in East Region ***
The North Carolina Tech Techsters were shocked 66-59 by 7th seeded San Francisco Tech in their East Region opener. It marks yet another year of disappointment for the Carolina school, which reached the national semi-finals in back-to-back seasons during the war but followed that up 3 straight years of missing the tournament entirely with a devastating opening round loss to a team they clearly should have defeated. For San Francisco Tech, which has been invited to the tournament only three times in its history and not since 1938, it marked the first ever tournament victory for the Unions.
San Francisco Tech will have another chance to play giant-killers as they next face Luther Gordon and the Liberty College Bells. The Bells, noses out of joint after being relegated to a third seed despite being ranked #3 in the nation, won a high scoring affair with Garden State by an 81-72 count. Luther Gordon moved to within 14 points of tying Morgan Melcher for the AIAA single season points record after the junior center scored 31 against the Redbirds.
The East nearly saw each of its top two seeds sidelined early after Academia Alliance champion Dickson almost pulled off an upset over Rainier College. The Majestics prevailed 49-48 but only because Roy Davis hit a set shot from the wing as time expired to save the day for Rainier College. If not for Davis' heroics it would have been the third consecutive season the Majestics fell in the opening round of the tournament -after winning twice and reaching the semi-finals once in the previous four years.
Next up for Rainier College will be Annapolis Maritime after the Navigators won a tournament game for the first time since their trip to the title contest in 1944 -where they came up short against Rainier College. A 64-56 victory over Detroit City College, keyed by 17 points from senior guard Franklin Bradfield, set up the naval training schools opportunity to seek revenge on the Majestics.
ERICKSON DOMINATES PERRY IN DEFENDING WELTER BELT
Thompson Palladium, Detroit, Mich. – Mac Erickson has gained a reputation as the boxing world has paid more and more attention to the World Welterweight Champion. This is what we know about the Saint Paul, Minnesota native. He is a powerful puncher that belies his size. Erickson has gained the nickname “Thor” because of his ability to use his “hammer” to defeat opponents. He can also throw punches in bunches, capitalizing on a wounded opponent to score big points by being aggressive in those moments.
But the jury is still out on whether he truly has the killer instinct to go for a knockout when it is there for the taking. When Erickson defeated Harold Stephens for the welterweight title, he pummeled Stephens to the brink of submission, but could not close the deal and had to wait for the judges to decide the affair. Erickson made quick work of John Gregory in his first title defense after letting Gregory take the first two rounds before unleashing a devastating uppercut that knocked him out in the third round.
So, is “Thor” Erickson the go-getter that knocks his opponents out when he gets the upper hand or is he the boxer who is unable to put his opponents away? Either way, Erickson is a welcome star in the welterweight ranks, a weight class left without a champion for the better part of the decade and whose belt changed hands as often as the weather.
As Erickson was set to take on Rudy Perry, a native son of Philadelphia with a solid 27-4-1 record, Erickson was ready to battle, seeking to put his uneven reputation to rest. He wanted to come out blazing hot and we would soon take pity on Perry for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The boxers came out of their corners to start the bout. After the first punches were landed about 20 seconds in, one man was still standing, and the other man was fumbling for the ropes. Erickson drilled Perry with a combination the culminated in a shot to Perry’s jaw that had the challenger face down on the canvas. Perry just beat the referee’s count, getting back on his feet at the count of nine. A knockout there would have set a record for the fastest bout in history. For the rest of the first round, Erickson went for the knockout, drilling Perry at every opportunity, connecting on five Big Boppers during the round and earning a second knockdown at the tail end of the round.
Perry’s fans were largely absent from the Palladium in Detroit, but Erickson’s Midwestern rooters were there in force on this Friday night and they had a lot to cheer about in that first round. Erickson had another fantastric start when the second round started, carrying over his dominance from the first round. Just 18 seconds into the second stanza, Erickson delivered a big combination that sent Perry down a third time. Overall, it was a very good round for the champion, not only for the offense, but he did not let Perry get a consequential punch through his own defenses.
You could have stopped the fight there and the referee was one count away from doing so in the first round. Perry had other ideas and whether he chose to forget the start of the fight or if Erickson erased the last few minutes with his punches is unclear, but full marks to Perry for looking forward instead of backward. Perry was the one who fired the opening salvo in this round, connecting with his first scoring punch in the entire bout at 18 seconds of the third round.
Erickson was taking the third round to catch his breath and clinched and held Perry during the round, blunting the effect of Perry starting to fight back. It was a strategic move, and he went back to attacking midway through the fourth round with a right cross and a left hook in succession that sent Perry reeling, but not quite down to the mat. Perry offered a solid counter with a right hand upstairs that stopped Erickson in his tracks. That single counterpunch was Perry’s most important punch of the fight, as he proved there was a second act to this play.
Perry took the fight to Erickson in the fifth before dominating the sixth round. Perry surprised Erickson with a combination that shook up the champion, an uppercut that connected hard with Erickson’s head, and an uppercut that almost knocked Erickson down. Erickson’s face under his left eye was beginning to swell in the sixth round and stood to continue to plague him for the rest of the fight, but Perry did not take advantage after the sixth.
Erickson was able to get back on solid footing in the seventh in some good back-and-forth with Perry. Both survived without a knockdown, but there were five Big Boppers in that round: three for Erickson and two for Perry. In the eighth round, there were five major punches as well, but all of them belonged to Erickson in his closing measure.
The eighth round started slowly, but the lapping of the gentle waves on the beach soon whipped up into a maelstrom. About a minute in, Erickson marked Perry with a clean combination, and it worked so well, he went back to it again and again, culminating on an upstairs-downstairs combination that put Perry down a fourth time. Perry struggled to stand, rolling over from his stomach to his knees and crawled to an upright position. Perry was wobbly and Erickson came at him with an overhand right that caught Perry on his left temple, violently dropping the challenger. This time, Perry barely offered an attempt to stand, and the referee completed his count. After five knockdowns, the punishment was over and Erickson stood again as champion.
We are starting to get a clearer picture of Erickson (19-0-0) and while the welterweight division will get more competitive with young, willing fighters in the distance, Erickson is an impressive champion. He has the power, and he is developing that killer instinct. But, in between his dominance early and late in this fight against Perry (27-5-1), he also showed he can take some punches and not fall. This new wrinkle will likely be tested as his competition gets better.
BOLOGNA’S BIG BOPPERS
Round 1: Erickson, 5-0 (0:20 combo/jaw/knockdown #1, 0:55 uppercut, 1:08 hook, 1:52 hook/head, 3:00 combo/knockdown #2)
Round 2: Erickson, 2-0 (0:18 combo/knockdown #3, 2:29 hook/jaw)
Round 3: Perry, 1-0 (0:18 uppercut)
Round 4: Erickson, 2-1 (E: 1:26 cross/face, 1:40 left hook/body; P: 2:10 right/head)
Round 5: Tied, 2-2 (E: 0:56 cross, 2:40 uppercut; P: 1:37 hook, 2:06 right/body)
Round 6: Perry, 4-0 (1:21 combo, 1:34 uppercut/head, 1:47 combo, 2:01 uppercut)
Round 7: Erickson, 3-2 (E: 0:27 uppercut, 1:33 right/midsection, 1:57 combo; P: 1:08 right, 3:00 cross)
Round 8: Erickson, 5-0 (0:54 combo, 1:37 combo, 1:59 combo, 2:17 combo/knockdown #4, 2:36 right/knockdown #5 (KO))
TOTAL: Erickson 19, Perry 10
- Mar 26- St Louis: MW Joe Morre (20-4-1) vs Millard Shelton (24-4)
- Mar 26- Bigsby Garden, New York: HW Scott Baker (19-3-3) vs Lewis Jones (19-1)
- Apr 11- Bigsby Garden, New York: HW contender Dan Miller (38-9-1) vs John Howe (31-15-1)
- Apr 16- Memphis: HW Cannon Cooper (25-4-1) vs Mike McFarland (19-6-2)
- Apr 20 - National Auditorium, Washington DC- WW contender Mark Westlake (26-3-1) vs Scott Sorensen (24-11-2)
- Apr 23- Atlanta: MW contender John Edmonds (27-3) vs Gerald MacIntosh (18-7-2)
- Apr 24: Paris, France: rising French MW Yohan Revel (19-1) vs Leone Pierotti (26-6)
- Apr 27- Flatbush Gardens, Brooklyn: rising MW Tommy Campbell (21-1-1) vs Richie Phillips (10-2)
- Apr 27- Flatbush Gardens, Brooklyn: Italian MW Hugo Canio (13-0-2) vs Brenton Garner (9-2-2)
- Apr 29- Lake Erie Arena, Cleveland: WW contender Carl Taylor (25-6-2) vs Stuart White (32-12-2)
- Jun 4- Broad Street Park, Philadelphia: World Middleweight Champ Adrian Petrie (19-1-1) vs Edouard Desmarais (43-2)
- Jun 25- Gothams Stadium, New York: World Heavyweight Champ Hector Sawyer (60-3-1) vs Roy Crawford (29-3)
PIONEERS HAVE QUESTIONS HEADING INTO '49 CAMPAIGN
Heading down the stretch of what was to be a fruitful, successful defense of their 1947 FABL Championship, the St. Louis Pioneers appeared to have all the answers. The team’s administration, between Manager Hugh Luckey and bombastic, yet possibly savvy, General Manager Dermot O’Connell (“Doc” for short), overcame the injury to Danny Hern, as well as lack of production from over half of their regulars, finessing the lineup and rotation to perfection.
The result, of course, is that being the first Federal Association team to win back-to-back FABL titles since Detroit did it in 1918-19.
However, there is one concerning issue with this team for 1949: All of the questions facing the ‘48 squad, which the administration patched up with “Band-Aids”, exist heading into this season. How have the Pioneers answered those questions? Have they answered those questions? What are the questions, anyway? Let’s find out.
QUESTION Why did you target shortstop Win Hamby, anyway?
ANSWER: The Pioneers traded young right fielder Bill Parker–he of 34 home runs in AAA Charleston last year–to land the 26-year-old infielder from Detroit. Hamby has had a lackluster go of things with the bat, hitting .194/.219/.258 in 98 trips to the plate in ‘47. That equates to a .477 OPS, and a 31 OPS+, for you baseball calculus minds at home.
The native of Little Rock was more contemporary last year, hitting .247/.302/.402 in 107 plate appearances. It was fine, but was it worth trading a hitter in Parker who became the kind of bopper the Pioneers could surely use in their lineup?
Where Hamby butters his bread explains this organization’s approach under DOC. Multiple scouts around the league claim that Hamby’s ability to field the baseball is the best the Figment has to offer. This Pioneers team is predicated on its pitching staff. DOC’s logic is this:
If you back the best pitching staff in baseball with the best defense in baseball, you will be in a lot of games. And you will win a lot of games…even with an offense as inconsistent as the Pioneers was last year.
Heck, the team won with Jim McBride, a rookie left-fielder learning to play center while the team pulled itself back into, and eventually ahead, of the FA pennant chase last year. It is entirely possible that, between Hamby, Homer Mills, and Jackie Washington, they have three-quarters of the best defensive infield in the Figment. With pitchers that force grounder after grounder in a ballpark where offense takes a nap…the Pioneers may have built the best home-park advantage in the league, something they enjoyed last season.
Regarding Mr. Parker…the question that exists with him is: Where would he play? Larry Gregory is The Spirit of St. Louis, as far as the city is concerned. Al Tucker may be 36 now, but his ‘48 (.351/.418/.440, 132 OPS+, league-leading 213 hits) showed age is not the concern many thought it would be after the ‘46 season. (His season officially puts him into Hall of Fame consideration after he retires; it did not cinch the job, but he is officially now in the conversation, once the time comes.)
Mr. Parker could have backed up both of those players, sure. But that is the team’s plan with McBride, which…well, let’s come back to that, once we’re done with Mr. Hamby, and the ripple effects of his arrival.
Question: So who is out of a job: Abel Gardner, Bill Freeman, Luke Michaels, or Gary Carmichael?
ANSWER: Hamby’s arrival does mean something’s got to give in the infield. Not everyone here will return. One of these four will either head to Charleston, or be released out of Spring Training.
Here is the case for each:
Freeman: The veteran, who arrived from New York via Rule V prior to 1947, was instrumental in the Pioneers’ run to the pennant, hitting .327/.387/.463, resulting in a 134 OPS+. However, his play slipped terribly last season; he finished at .286/.350/.390, but he surged late in the season to pull those numbers up. He was platooning with Washington for much of the second half of the season, and would have lost his job, had Jackie not struggled with the bat. The wakeup did trigger Freeman’s bat. Add in Freeman’s very suspect defense (23 errors since joining St. Louis), and you figure his days as a regular are over.
Verdict: If his bat can play off the bench, he’s an easy keep. He has the best hit tool out of any of the four listed here. If not, the team will find probably work to find a new home for him.
Gardner: The 33-year-old came to St. Louis in 1940, then split time with Oakland before staying here in 1942. Post-war, Gardner struggled. But during this championship run, Gardner has been quite effective off the bench, hitting .316 with an OPS+ of 126. Sure, he only had 19 at-bats last year, but they were an effective 19 at-bats.
The two things working for Gardner are that he is a proven leader with this club, and he is a quality defenseman. Another DOC initiative with this organization is finding men who can lead men. Gardner, who received a Purple Heart at the Battle of the Bulge, has easily proven that. Given that he also has proven he can perform in a pinch, and cover ground quite well on the defensive side…well, he may be one of those guys that outsiders see and wonder why he is on the team, but those inside the clubhouse know.
Verdict: Even though he is a product of…Kansas City…Gardner has a place on the club.
Michaels: Another promising youngster who had his development cut by wartime, the 30-year-old’s everyday prospects are hurt the most by Hamby’s presence. Michaels hit .261/.292/.283 lsat year (574 OPS), which is not very promising in the least. He hit .342/.382/.408 with Oakland in the GWL back in ‘41, but he has not gotten the repetitions necessary to find that form again. He is a solid defender who can play three different spots, though. And he costs the team $10,000, as opposed to Freeman’s $18,000.
Verdict: It’s possible the team sends Michaels to Charleston for more chances to play regularly, and stay sharp, should anything happen to the three likely regulars. Al Monroe, a busher who has shown ability, is pushing for his arrival to the big club, though…Michaels’ position could be fragile.
Carmichael: The journeyman came to the club off waivers from Brooklyn in early ‘47. He has been valuable, hitting .250/.367/.335 in ‘47 (1.7 WAR), and .282/.332/.393 as a lefty platoon last season. Unfortunately, it seems like age–he turns 35 on May 3–may have hampered his defensive reflexes at the hot corner, where he settled in as a reliable option after starting his career as an erratic second sacker. He had his worst defensive season at third last year.
Verdict: With his advancing age and the club’s predilection for defensive-minded play, Carmichael really has to show up in Spring Training to have a shot at staying with the club.
Prediction: Gardner isn’t going anywhere. After that, Freeman and Michaels will have a battle for that last infield spot. Carmichael is likely destined for Charleston, retirement, or the unemployment line.
Question: What happens in center field this season?
ANSWER: The Pioneers started last year with Cal Page as the regular centerfielder. To explain how that went, it needs to be pointed out that Jim McBride, a left fielder, was brought up from Charleston–where he was crushing the ball–to take his place.
McBride had no real experience playing center. He learned on the fly. That should encapsulate the health of the position for the parent club. The long-term health is presumably in good condition, with top-flight prospect George Atkins–rated in the top ten of all prospects on most scout sheets around the league–is projected to be the starter by the 1951 season.
That does not, of course, have any impact on this season. So, what has the team done to solve this issue? The team kicked out trades for a couple of players, but decided against making any moves involving top bushers in third baseman Dan Finch, as well as pitchers Raphie Spires and Willis Barth.
Here are the options heading into 1949, according to information gathered by team sources. There are some rather unconventional ideas here.
1. Run Page back out there. Page is elite defensively; Larry Gregory and Al Tucker, the stalwart corner spots, are not. The issue last year was that the entire offense tanked to start the season. There were wholesale changes to try and get the bats back on track. When McBride hit nearly .500 for the first two months of AAA ball, he became a decision made…at the expense of Page.
If one were to assume that the offense performs at the level it did in August and September last year, Page is easily the most viable option. You are not going to get much offense out of him. However, logically, he makes the most sense…in the short-term, at least.
2. Red Hinton takes over. Hinton, the team’s first draft pick in the ‘48 draft (though a second-round selection, thanks to the Hiram Steinberg trade), was drafted with the expectation that he would rise quickly to the parent club. The organization expects Hinton to be the bridge between now and Atkins. There are some within the front office that hope Hinton performs so well, the team can use Atkins, or fellow elite prospect Jack Adams, as a trade chip for what will eventually be Danny Hern’s replacement.
Hinton, who turns 23 at the end of June, spent time in at B-level Charlotte, as well as A-level Hartford last year. He was reasonable with the bat; however, he did not exactly set the baseball world on fire. He is what most would expect from a second-round draftee: A kid with solid skills, but one needing more seasoning in the bushes.
Hinton will be joining the Pioneers for Spring Training, and he and Page will be given the opportunity to seize the everyday role. Page has a leg up, because he is already on the payroll, and has a track record with the club. Of course, that track record comes with a strike against for being benched last year.
However, to say DOC loves Hinton is an understatement. Looking at how he managed the bushes last year, especially the top prospects, it is unlikely that Hinton will be rushed to accommodate the Pioneers. It is much more likely that Hinton starts the year in, say, AA or AAA, with the hope that he joins the parent club by his 23rd birthday.
3. Homer Mills, center fielder extraordinaire. This is where things get different. Mills, the 27-year-old entering his sixth year with the club. He has started all but fourteen of the 664 games he has been a Pioneer. He has been the regular shortstop for the last three seasons, after spending the first half of his time in St. Louis splitting time between short, second base, and third base.
He has logged no professional innings in center field.
Faithful reader, your immediate question is the same as mine, and virtually everyone who has engaged in this conversation:
Why is this a consideration?
Mills is an elite-level defender in the infield. Even though he struggled until August of last season, he has generally become a reliable hitter in the past couple of years. And with Mills and Hamby, the Pioneers likely have the best defensive keystone in baseball. With the understanding that defense is the priority in St. Louis, why would they bother with this ridiculous premise?
This screams of someone who feels they are too smart for the room, potentially making a rash, ludicrous decision that could have negative ripple effects to the rest of the club.
That said…there actually is some logic here. Hamby and Jackie Washington are, at the very least, defensive contemporaries to Mills at short. It’s actually likely that both are better at the position than Mills, and that Hamby starts the season at short, with Mills at third. And, honestly, the defensive statistics do not back up the notion that Mills is an elite shortstop. Mills has averaged 19 errors over the past three seasons, which is a considerable amount.
So, Mills is not glued to short.
Mills is also fast with excellent quickness. He is able to track the ball very well. If the team is not concerned that the strain of learning a foreign position would negatively impact his bat, then the team has adequate cover to experiment.
Doing this could mean that either Luke Michaels or Bill Freeman gain the majority of time at second base, or that the team retains Carmichael for third base. If you recall that conversation, the club might not be as welcoming to that idea.
There are two potential avenues that could lead to this experiment being a ripple effect (and which could produce a major ripple effect to the first question posed). If the aforementioned busher Monroe, or the aforementioned prospect Finch, find footing in the infield this year, there is a greater possibility that Mills is placed in center field, at least some of the time.
In terms of flexibility, one of the two youngsters earning their way onto the big club is the best plan of action, if the team feels Mills is capable enough in the outfield. Finch winning the starting job at third base is the utopian concept, as it would allow the team to start Hamby and Mills up the middle, with Washington as the super-utility role he was employed in last season. This would allow for Washington to cover at second when Mills went to center. The same could be said of Monroe, with Washington at short, Hamby at third, and Mills at second, with Monroe playing second when Mills went to center.
The question for all of this is, of course…can they achieve this while not allowing the offense to suffer? The secondary question is, can they hit well enough out of the gate to allow patience on these plans? The team stumbled so much out of the gate on offense last season that patience was thrown out the window.
Luckey and DOC have both preached the need for a system in St. Louis to be built and established, so that the current wave of success does not recede into the horizon. However, with that weighed against the added pressure of winning a third-straight FABL title, which has been only achieved one time–the 1924-26 New York Stars–surely has the team admin trying to put the absolute best lineup on the field on Opening Day. That could make the prospect of a Monroe, Finch, or Hinton in the team’s plans, let alone the Opening Day lineup, quite difficult to fathom.
Question: Who is the team’s Sunday Starter?
ANSWER: In 1947, the 3-H Club (Hackney, Hern, & Hiram) was born.
In 1948, the 3-H Club may have given way to the Four Horses of the Apocalypse, as Dick Long joined the three aces to form what was considered to be the strongest, most consistent rotation in the league. The team utilized those four–when Hern was healthy, of course–along with a very favorable schedule down the stretch, to constantly trot them out against league hitters.
The main reason they were able to do this was rest days, and not having as many Sunday doubleheaders down the stretch. That will not be the case in 1949, as the team has an abundance of doubleheaders, not just early, but in August and September.
The concept of the Sunday Starter is a novel one, sure. But having a dependable fifth man can mean the difference between a third-straight pennant and third place in the standings.
The good news for the Pioneers is that they have several options for that fifth starting spot. The bad news for the Pioneers is that they don’t have a discernible favorite for the role. Here is who is in the running:
Lazaro DeLeon (26): DeLeon held the role down the stretch last season. While he was not utilized much, especially in the final month of the year, his three-hit shutout of the Philadelphia Keystones on September 19th all-but-clinched the FA pennant for the Pioneers.
The Cuban native, known as “El Mago” (The Magician), was not terribly magical last year, finishing 2-3 with a 4.14 ERA in his 45.2 innings. He does own a 19-10, 2.63 season with the Pioneers, that coming in 1945. He also owns a 6-17, 3.68 season, which came in 1946. Whichever one shows up will decide if DeLeon, who is likely to get the first opportunity to be the fifth man, sticks in the role.
Ralphie Spires (23): The organization is most hopeful that Spires, a top-100 prospect in the FABL, wins and holds the SS job out of the gate. Spires’ abilities–he is known as a groundball and control specialist–seem custom-made for St. Louis, both in ballpark, and in defense.
Unfortunately, Spires, brought up as cover when Hern was injured last year, gave up 27 hits in 17.1 innings. Four of those were home runs. The result was a 6.75 ERA, and a 1.90 WHIP. He fared a bit better at AAA Charlotte, going 9-8, 4.44 (1.45 WHIP).
The team is hoping his stint down in Cuba, where he was 5-4 with three saves, along with a 2.82 ERA (1.26 WHIP), shows he is ready for a more substantial role with the parent club this season.
Tom Buchanan (25): Buchanan was a war-time prospect casualty. He lost 1943 and 1944 to his service in Europe. Unfortunately, those took away his age-20 and 21 seasons, which are prime development time for pitchers.
When he came back, he was immediately brought up to St. Louis as a 22-year-old. He performed reasonably well, though he severely lacked control, as evidenced by his 27 walks, against 18 strikeouts, in 49 innings.
The control issues have plagued Buchanan throughout his career. Evidence: He has never had a professional season in which he struck out more hitters than he walked. Last year was the closest; he walked 100, and struck out 96. That was part of a 7-15, 4.08 season. He did give up less hits (208) than innings pitched, leading team admin to believe that, if he can improve the control, he could become a serious force in the FABL.
To this point, though, that “if” is a big one…too big for Buchanan to overcome, so far.
Charlie Leist (26): Leist, who came to the organization in a trade with Brooklyn in 1947, has not performed well enough in the bushes to warrant much consideration. Last year, he was 1-8, 5.86 (1.61 WHIP) with AAA Charlotte. In 1947, he was 10-21, 4.46 (1.55).
He was another who covered some innings during Hern’s injury last year; he was 1-0, 6.15 (1.94) with the Pioneers.
The coaching staff likes his stuff. He has just never put it together.
Ben Fiskars (27): Fiskars started 20 games last season, finishing the season with a 6-7 mark, and a 4.93 ERA (1.64 WHIP). He was very effective early in the season; however, that effectiveness waned as the season waged on, and he lost his spot to DeLeon.
Fiskars’ issue, like several of the others on this list, is command. He walked 87 in 133.1 innings last year. The Pioneers will be hard-pressed to have confidence in his ability to not put hitters on base free-of-charge.
Joe Hess (27): A hard-throwing lefty–he reportedly can get his fastball to 95 MPH and above–Hess has never gotten a chance in the FABL. Last year, he pitched reasonably well, going 11-8, 3.68 (1.57) with Charlotte. He is another command issue, as evidenced by his 124 walks, as well as 16 home runs.
Scouts rave about Hess’ stuff; as good as his fastball is, his slider and changeup are even better. He generally keeps the ball on the ground. If he can master the early count, and force hitters to try to hit his pitch, not only could he be a solid contributor for the Pioneers…he could become a force in the FABL.
Willis Barth (22): This is the longshot at this stage, as Barth has not pitched above A-level ball. However, he is gaining considerable traction among FABL scouts, and was asked about in trade talks this offseason. Barth lacks size–he is just 5’5, 130 pounds–but has excellent control, as well as a fantastic sinker tailor-made for St. Louis.
It is highly unexpected that Barth breaks camp with the Pioneers; the likely best-laid course for Barth’s 1949 is that he starts in A, and ends the season with Charlotte……or, if a Sunday Starter is locked down, ends up with another team, in exchange for a solid second or third baseman.
FAMILY REUNION BEHIND THE BENCHES IN TORONTO
No such records exist of course to neither confirm nor deny, but the general consensus is when Fred Barrell trots out to home plate with the visitor's lineup card at Forester Field prior to the Toronto Wolves lid lifter in Cleveland on April 19 it will mark a historic event in the annals of professional sports. Never before, it is widely believed, have two brothers been handling the head coaching duties for two sports teams in the same city.
Fred arrives as the Wolves new manager via Detroit where he most recently was employed as the Scouting Director for the Federal Association Dynamos. After a long period of negotiation, much of it shrouded in secrecy, Wolves magnate Bernie Millard secured the services of the former star catcher to replace Bob Call as the Wolves new skipper.
His brother Jack, one of the most respected coaches in big-time hockey, also came from Detroit although with a quick pit stop or two in the minor leagues. Jack's early days were spent on the ice in Montreal, far from the family business- which clearly is baseball but stretches well across the spectrum of all sports these days, and the natural athleticism all Barrell's seem to possess was used for both professional hockey and football by Jack. As he got older and his playing days came to an end Jack found his niche as a coach with the Detroit Motors but a falling out a few years ago with Motors management sent him to the west coast, only to be rescued by the Dukes David Welcombe nearly two years ago.
Jack won a Challenge Cup a year ago in his first season behind the bench in Toronto and now has the Dukes set to begin a defense of that title with a playoff series opening this week against Chicago. Fred will be hoping for the same success as he begins his time with the Wolves.
Brett Bing has sat down with the Barrell brothers over the past few months since the start of rumours of Fred becoming Wolves skipper. A few times the interviews have been with them together, others have been one on one. This is compilation of those interviews:
Mail & Empire: You two are both very good at keeping secrets, I tried many times, in many ways to get myself a scoop in our talks back in December. Neither of you would give me anything to work with or follow up.
Jack Barrell: We are both used to dealing with sportswriters from our time as players along with our present jobs. We know how to answer questions without revealing secrets. I knew something was in the works when Mr. Millard invited me to his residence for dinner in late November. I thought it was strange not to go a restaurant, I was worried that it was about Mr. Millard's well publicized desire to control the hockey team and I did not want it to seem that I was doing anything behind Mr. Welcombe's back with the Dukes. Mr. Millard surprised me when he said "No, it was about one of my baseball playing brothers."
I could not think of which one until Mr. Millard, as is his way, came straight to the point "Do you think Fred would come to Toronto as the next Wolves field general? He is going to be a manager in the FABL sooner rather than later I want it be in Toronto." I said that would be question that Fred would have to answer but moving to Toronto would not be a problem. Toronto is not much different than Detroit or Brooklyn, the people are much the same living similar lifestyles. The only difference is needing a passport to cross the border. I thought that Fred's wife Tillie and children Freddy, Benny and Hobie would fit right in after a short period with help from myself and Marie.
As I left Mr. Millard ask me not to talk to Fred until after he had taken the train tomorrow to finalize his deal with Dynamos owner Mr. Thompson and then start discussions with Fred. Before I left Mr. Millard told me he had not given up on his hockey dream, but baseball and basketball would occupy his time for the next few years.
I went home to let Marie what Mr. Millard wanted, she knew this all had to be kept secret, wives seemed to have more intuition. She was excited with the prospect of Tillie around so they could have each others' shoulders to lean on while their husbands were out of town, with is often during our seasons. I cannot tell you how many times I almost blurted out the details, Fred is much better at this cloak and dagger stuff given his service during the war.
Fred Barrell: When I first met with Mr. Millard after he concluded his deal with Mr. Thompson, I almost fell out of my chair. Instead of saying yes, I asked for time to think it over, to talk to my family about this life changing decision. My involvement in baseball had been as a player and scout. The manager's job is much, much different. It has more, varying demands on your time. I wished at that time my parents were both still alive so I could ask then for their input. I think Rufus' answer would have been the same as Tillie's "Ask yourself if this is what you really want to do, the pressures of being a manager are different than your present job. Is Toronto the right place to become manager? If the answer is yes, then we all go to Toronto."
It will be nice to have Jack, Marie around to help us get settled, Freddy will make new friends he is outgoing, Benny is happy wherever he is, Hobie will become Quinton Pollack's biggest fan, of that I am certain.
After spending a sleepless night, I decided to make only 2 calls the following day. On was to Jack. His advice was similar to Tillie's which came down to "Do you have confidence in your ability to make your first step into the managerial world at the highest level, in the FABL?"
Jack, with all his coaching experience in hockey, knew the challenges I would face. He told me early on I will have to rely on staff, most of whom I am sure you know at least in passing, until you get your feet on the ground. Is the GM someone I could work with on an almost daily basis? Am I prepared to deal with all the players questions, concerns, some of which may seem ridiculous or petty? Can I meet with the press every day to explain the team's fortunes, good or bad, while remaining on an even keel? Remember as manager you will be the most public face of the team, you will get too much credit when things are going well, too much blame when the team is going poorly. If you can answer all those question in the affirmative, then I will see in Toronto."
My second call was to Roland (brother Rollie Barrell who owns the Detroit Maroons and Mustangs) who has had dealings with Mr. Millard. He told me "If he spent the time to come to see you personally then he believes you have the requisite skills to do the job. He did not delegate the job to an assistant, which speaks highly of his regard for you. You will have some difficult times with him, he does not go behind anyone's back or deal in innuendo, he will tell you in person what he thinks of the job you are doing - possibly too often. He is generous if he believes you are on the right path. It comes down to are you ready for the big job?"
After seemingly endless discussions with Tillie, I decide to tell Mr. Thompson I had decided to accept the Toronto job, after the draft, then called Mr. Millard. We spent a few days over the Christmas holidays in Toronto and it was a great experience. Hobart went to few junior hockey games with his uncle although and was truly amazed at the number of outdoor rinks with boards that were lit until 9:00 PM, the curfew. The highlight of his Christmas was when his cousin Agnes and her husband Quinton (Dukes center Pollack) showed up Christmas Day with presents for the kids. Hobart's present was a new pair of skates along with a new Mic-Mac stick that was basically the last I saw of him for the rest of the week until the light went off at the rinks. I went back to Detroit to finish to draft preparations while the family stayed in Ontario until school started in January.
Jack: We both have great wives they handle all the details to allow us to concentrate on jobs. I did not tell Fred that Mr. Millard told me at our initial meeting, after congratulating me on the quick turnaround of the Dukes, he may be dealing Fred a tougher hand with the Wolves as they are aging moving towards a roster turnover that may take a few years to accomplish. Fred should be smart enough to see that fact.
It will be a busy week for both of Coaches Barrell. Jack is set to begin defense of the Challenge Cup with the semi-final series against Chicago getting underway this week while Fred remains in Florida, putting the Wolves through their paces in advance of the April 18th season opener in Cleveland.
- Fred Barrell tells the Toronto Mail & Empire that he is beginning to settle into his duties as manager. He is surprised at the varied demands on his time. "I was never aware of the all the things that demand the manager's attention, I have a whole new respect for the position and the guys that managed me over my career. My staff has been terrific in helping me establish a routine in particular Dick Dennis. I see why Bob Call was always stressing pitching and defense here, from what I see we will have a strong staff. Johnny Franklin does a great job putting the staff through there daily paces. The training staff tells me Lou Jayson is probably gone for the season with an elbow injury. Terrible news for Lou someone else now gets an opportunity in the 'pen for 1949. A start of 4-9 is not ideal but I see good things coming. I have been easing some of the veterans in while looking at prospects. A few are off to a slow start in particular Fred McCormick off to a 1 for 17 start, I am not worried about him he will hit. We have the third oldest ML roster in the FABL, these guys know what to do to be ready for Opening Day in 4 weeks. We have optioned some players out which I have found as the most difficult job so far, down now to 33 guys in Wolves camp."
- The St Louis Pioneers are trying all sorts of stuff in spring training: Red Hinton is getting a look in center, as is Homer Mills, who is currently slated to become the regular second baseman. If Hinton, busher SS Al Monroe, who is also seeing regular time in ST, or prospect 3B Dan Finch (up in ST for the second time), can stick with the parent club, the dynamic of the 1949 team changes dramatically. Additionally, there may be a changing of the guard behind the plate, where young Artie Smith is getting the majority of starts over stalwart Heinie Zimmer. Zim, who is 34, had his worst offensive season since his rookie year in 1937. While he was, unquestionably, the best defensive catcher in baseball last year, the organization does seem to want to begin the transition to a younger regular at the position.
- Word out of Stars camp is the club is looking at shaking up the minor leagues after not keeping a close eye on it for the last couple seasons. Many, many changes... hopefully for the better. Couple more demotions from spring camp in the bullpen to give the other arms more innings. Next week we'll start purging position players.
PATRIOTS POST-SEASON CHANCES IN JEOPARDY
A tough stretch for the Hartford Patriots probably ends their playoff hopes. A three-game losing streak puts them at 23-29 on the season. The offense has gone stone cold, as they managed to post just 66 points in a 95-66 embarrassment in Baltimore. The team shot just 28.1% from the field, and 53% from the line. Add in just 13 assists, against 16 turnovers, and you have an easy bake recipe for blowout cake.
The team then went for seconds, posting just 63 in a 75-63 loss to lowly Pittsburgh. The Pats used exactly the same recipe as in Baltimore, but tweaked it slightly. They shot 63% from the line, but just 23% from the field. They did add two assists (15), but kept the same turnover figure. Those three losses drop the Pats to 7th in the East Division, and a full four games back of Baltimore for the fourth and final playoff berth.
The Pats may be on the wrong side of the age curve as well, as several of their players are in their 30s. It is a weird predicament for Pats’ admin, though, because of discussion from dark corners that the league may need to contract teams in the future to survive. Undergoing a full overhaul of the organization--Head Coach Irvin Lewis may be given a pink slip at the end of the season--is not an attractive prospect at any time, but doing so at this moment may be especially precarious, if those rumors prove prescient.
The season isn’t over, of course; there are sixteen games left. But this team has to win, and win on the road, where they are 8-18. Half of their remaining schedule is away from Pratt Fieldhouse.
- The Panthers offense is looking much more fluid with the return of Joe Hampton. Chicago has won four straight and five of the last six, now a game ahead of the Mustangs for first with a little over a month left in the season.
- Detroit has been dealing with the injury bug as David Reed, the Mustangs third scoring option behind the big men Jack Kurtz and rookie Ward Messer, has been out 3 weeks with a sprained ankle and now another starter is also sidelined. That would be point guard Israel Slusher, who is likely done for the season after experience issues with his back. The good news is Reed is close to full health but there is a lot of pressure on the inexperienced Anderson Froggatt to step up in Slusher's absence.
- While the top four teams in the West Division seem to be well in control of a playoff berth, there is quite a battle waging in the East for the final spot. Just 4 games separate the fourth place Baltimore Barons from the 7th place Hartford Patriots with Rochester and Boston scattered in the mix.
- Top spot in the East and first place overall continues to be a battle between old ABC rivals Brooklyn and Washington with neither seemingly willing to give an inch. The Statesmen have won 7 in a row while the Red Caps are riding a six-game winning streak and each team owns a 41-12 record. All eyes are on March 28 when the two clubs will hook up for the final time in the regular season with a meeting at Brooklyn's Flatbush Gardens. Head-to-head the Red Caps hold a 4-1 lead in the season series.
- Brooklyn did get bad news this week with word that starting forward Ron Berner, will miss the rest of the regular season with a broken foot. The Liberty College grad was averaging 11.5 points per game this season.
Code:
FBL STANDINGS
EAST W L PCT GB
Brooklyn 41 12 .774 -
Washington 41 12 .774 -
Philadelphia 33 19 .635 7.5
Baltimore 27 25 .519 13.5
Rochester 26 26 .500 14.5
Boston 25 28 .472 16.0
Hartford 23 29 .442 17.5
New York 16 36 .308 24.5
Syracuse 7 46 .132 34.0
WEST W L PCT GB
Chicago 35 18 .660 -
Detroit 34 19 .642 1.0
Cleveland 30 22 .577 4.5
Cincinnati 29 25 .537 6.5
Pittsburgh 23 30 .434 12.0
Buffalo 16 37 .302 19.0
Toronto 16 38 .296 19.5
LUDWICK TOPS OSA DRAFT LIST
OSA's pre-tournament rankings of the top 40 collegiate seniors has been released with center Willy Ludwick of the number one ranked Western Iowa Canaries at the top of the heap. The 6'11" Nebraska native has been a starter for the Canaries each of the past three years and led the club to a 28-1 record and the Great Lakes Alliance title. He averaged 13.3 points per game and was among the nations leaders with 8.4 rebounds per contest. Ludwick's Western Iowa teammate Charlie Maynard also drew notice from the OSA, which placed Maynard 28th on the list.
The highest pair of teammates ranked are St Blane forwards Cy Worley and Josh Samuels who ended up second and sixth among the 40 seniors listed by the scouting service. In an overall ranking of pro talent by all classes, Luther Gordon remains number one as the talented Liberty College junior tossed out Ludwick and Worley for the top spot.
A pair of familiar names to FABL fans cracked the list near the bottom with Rainier College sophomore guard Don Higgins and Noble Jones College freshman guard Charlie Barrell both appearing on the OSA list of pro basketball prospects regardless of their draft class. Higgins is the younger brother of former Boston Minutemen pictcher Dick Higgins and is a second year starter with the Majestics while Barrell, who saw limited action for the Colonels as a freshman this year and will also play baseball and football for the school, is clearly recognizable as a member of the most famous family in sports. Charlie would have been a high first round pick in the 1948 FABL draft had he not opted out in order to attend the Georgia school.
Assuming all 16 teams survive the season and there are certainly some questions regarding a few of them, the Syracuse Titans appear to be a lock to have the first overall selection for the second year in a row. The Titans, who shifted from Toronto over the summer, are far and away the worst club in the league with a 7-43 record.
A year ago the Titans opted to select Texas Gulf Coast forward Darren Fuhrman, who was number one on the OSA list, over Liberty College center Ward Messer. While Messer has gone on to star for Detroit and is challenging for the league scoring and rebound titles, Fuhrman has had his struggles with the Titans. He did score a career best 26 points in a loss to Brooklyn a couple of weeks ago but a few days later dislocated his knee and will be sidelined likely until mid-April. On the season Fuhrman is averaging just over 9 points and 8 rebounds per game and has made 41 starts for the terrible Titans.
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 3/20/1949
- The Communitst-Controlled "People's Council" adopted a constitution for the 20 million Germans living under Soviet rule in response to a Western German government being established recently
- The United States, Canada and key Western European nations revealed the terms of the North Atlantic treaty late last week including making it clear that each member of the projected alliance would be obligated to use armed force to help meet any "all-out" attack on any one of them.
- Portugal is said to be close to agreeing to join the North Atlantic Alliance.
- Communists delayed Italian adherence to the Atlantic Alliance by a filibuster in parliament. They also churned up strikes in Milan and Genoa in protest.
- Despite running into some objections from the Democratic-controlled Congress, President Truman remains hopeful his "fair deal" program will be enacted.
- The Senate Interior Committee gave a pointed answer to the mine shutdown ordered by John L. Lewis by approving President Truman's nomination of James Boyd as the director of the Federal Bureau of Mines. Lewis ordered a two-week shutdown in part as a protest against Boyd's appointment.
- President Truman told Congress there are signs that the tide of battle in Greece is turning against the Communist guerrillas.